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Pope Francis' call for a truce notwithstanding, the culture war rages on in America.

Last week, a Utah judge struck down part of the state's anti-polygamy law, clearing the way for men to marry multiple spouses.

Methodist pastor Frank Schaefer, defrocked for officiating at the same-sex marriage of his son, refused to recant, and joined a Dupont Circle congregation, declaring from the pulpit to repeated ovations Sunday, "Change is coming" to the United Methodist Church.

Major media stories both.

Yet these were skirmishes alongside the culture war clash last week over the remarks to GQ magazine of Phil Robertson, patriarch of the clan of "Duck Dynasty," the wildly popular show on A&E.

Using crude terms, but biblically correct arguments, Robertson told GQ what he thought of homosexuality and moral relativism. Said Robertson:

"Everything is blurred on what's right and what's wrong. Sin becomes fine. ... Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men. ...

"Don't be deceived. Neither the adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexuality offenders, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers -- they won't inherit the kingdom of God. Don't deceive yourself."

The homosexual lobby GLAAD swiftly demanded that Robertson be purged from "Duck Dynasty." And A&E suspended him indefinitely.

The backlash was swift and huge. Followers of "Duck Dynasty," Evangelicals, politicians and free-speech champions arose to defend Robertson's right to speak without punishment. Millions endorsed his views on what the Bible says and Christianity professes and promises.

The battle revealed an immense and intense hostility in Middle America to the moral agenda being imposed by our cultural elites.

While defenders of Robertson invoked the First Amendment, that is not the issue here. No one is denying Robertson his right to speak.

What GLAAD wants to do is to blacklist Robertson, to punish him by taking away his podium, "Duck Dynasty." The gay rights militants cannot silence him, but they do have the power to cost him his job and take away his megaphone so that his vast audience can no longer hear him.

The blacklist of the Truman era did not deny the Hollywood Ten their right to produce movie scripts. It was an agreed-upon Hollywood policy not to commission or to use the work of unrepentant Communists as writers, producers or directors.

Who were the Hollywood Ten? They were closet Communists, secret members of a Communist Party USA, then a wholly owned subsidiary of the greatest mass murderer in history, Joseph Stalin.

And of what were the Hollywood Ten guilty?

When Stalinists were eradicating freedom and exterminating Eastern European Christians and overrunning China and murdering millions, as President Truman tried to rally the forces of freedom, the Hollywood Ten took the Fifth Amendment. They refused to repudiate Communism or name names of fellow Communists who were still reshaping the thinking of America from their upholstered perches in the film industry.

Today, however, the Hollywood Ten are regarded as martyrs, moral heroes. Had they been secret Nazis rather than secret Stalinists in those years, they would likely not be so beloved of the Hollyleft.

Contrast if you will the sins for which Phil Robertson is being blacklisted with those of the Hollywood Ten.

He is a fundamentalist Christian professing his belief in what he holds to be Bible truths about sin, homosexuality, heaven and hell. For so doing, he is being censored by elites who wish to deny him access to the medium they largely control -- television.

And what were the comparable sins of the Hollywood Ten?

They were witting collaborators in a 70-year Communist conspiracy responsible for the murder of millions, which, in the 1940s, looked on the United States of America as the last impediment to world conquest.

In that era, we were agreed that Communism and Communists were the enemies of America and mankind and should be regarded and treated as such.

To our modern moral and cultural elites, it is those who condemn the values of GLAAD who are the enemies of decency and progress who ought to be fired and blacklisted to prevent their poisonous views from being disseminated.

In the Hollywood of the late 1940s, Communism was persona non grata. In the 21st century, biblical Christianity is persona non grata.

No, this is not the America we grew up in. And it is becoming less so.

According to a CNN poll last week, while belief in God and the divinity of Christ is still shared by two-thirds of Americans, that share -- older, more Republican, less educated -- is falling.

Worldwide, too, Christianity at Christmas 2013 seems in a long retreat. Receding slowly in America, and moribund in Europe, Christianity is undergoing merciless persecutions in Africa and the Middle East -- from Nigeria to the Central African Republic to Egypt, Syria and Iraq.

Compared to these folks suffering martyrdom for the faith, we have it easy here.

__________________
All our wars in air or in water are of NO worth;
if we haven’t so far learnt to live on earth.
All battles do culminate in ending a war;
A war generating battles is ‘curse’ not ‘mirth’.

At that time, I will search out and destroy all of the nations who have come against Jerusalem - Zechariah 12:9

I am so thrilled to see a man like Pat Buchanan, who says he trusts Iran more than Israel, defending the right of free speech. Never has one man hoisted himself by his own petard as many times for so little results at Pat Buchanan. Paddy we hardly knew ye'! (We'll have it out bogside away from the women and children.)

And who could not fail to be charmed by Phil's comments about Black Americans being happy and singing in the days of the Jim Crow laws, before civil rights! I am sure that some his best friends are African Americans--and they all agree with him. I know we Jews really got a lot out of the Nuremberg laws; gave us some order and discipline and kept our animal instincts for pinching wallets and dominating the wholesale cloth trade in check around respectable Aryan folk.

I tend to be turned off equally by all extremism, right or left, and very disgusted with centrist avoiders/equivocators.

But yes, let them all speak freely! Best to let a man hang himself by his own words, or not. A&E is a commercial entertainment company, and should have always known what a Christian like Phil thinks, through discussions and other interactions. And Christian fundamentalists must have known that a for-profit secular channel will always be politically correct. Silliness all around.

Let Phil speak as he will, but why should A&E be his pulpit? He is on a TV programme by contract. It is all business. Let him do what everyone else does: rant on the Net, or start an organisation.

The reality star granted the U.K.'s Daily Mail access to the study group at his church in West Monroe, La., during which he defending himself and stood by his comments in a recent GQ profile, which included: "It seems like, to me, a vagina -- as a man -- would be more desirable than a man's anus. That's just me. I'm just thinking: There's more there! She's got more to offer. I mean, come on, dudes! You know what I'm saying? But hey, sin: It's not logical, my man. It's just not logical."

In the magazine, Robertson also was asked what he finds sinful. His answer: "Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men."

On Sunday, he defended himself according to the Daily Mail, which reported that he said he was simply quoting from the Bible. He also said that Jesus could save gay people.

"I love all men and women," he said. "I am a lover of humanity, not a hater."

During his 45-minute remarks, he also defended his intelligence level.
"We are a bunch of rednecks from Louisiana, but I am not uneducated," he said. "I have a degree from Louisiana Tech. But this week I have been called an ignoramus. This week I have been asked, 'Is this the first time you have brought up sin?' I said, 'Are you kidding? I have been traveling to and fro spreading this message.' Then he said, 'Well do you invite yourself to go and get your Bible and tell people what you are now sharing with us?' I said, 'No they are inviting me.'"

He led a prayer at the end of the study group session, during which he stated: "I will not give or back off from my path because you conquered death, Father, so we are not worried about all the repercussions."
The Daily Mail reported that he was approached by a fellow churchgoer who thanked Robertson for what he said. His response: "I didn't think much of it at all, but it seems a lot of other people did."

After his Bible study group, Robertson and the rest of the study group attended a church service led by his son Alan, who referenced the controversy: "Well, we've had a quite a quiet week, shot some ducks, done some shopping, ignited a national controversy."

On Wednesday, A&E placed Robertson on indefinite suspension after the comments were published online.

"We are extremely disappointed to have read Phil Robertson's comments in GQ, which are based on his own personal beliefs and are not reflected in the series Duck Dynasty," A&E said in a statement. "His personal views in no way reflect those of A+E Networks, who have always been strong supporters and champions of the LGBT community. The network has placed Phil under hiatus from filming indefinitely."

Robertson, however, will likely appear in season four of the show, which premieres Jan. 15, since production is largely wrapped.

The Robertson family on Thursday released its own statement in response to the controversy.

"We want to thank all of you for your prayers and support. The family has spent much time in prayer since learning of A&E's decision. We want you to know that first and foremost we are a family rooted in our faith in God and our belief that the Bible is His word. While some of Phil's unfiltered comments to the reporter were coarse, his beliefs are grounded in the teachings of the Bible," reads a statement posted on the family's Duck Commander website.

"Phil is a Godly man who follows what the Bible says are the greatest commandments: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart' and 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' Phil would never incite or encourage hate. We are disappointed that Phil has been placed on hiatus for expressing his faith, which is his constitutionally protected right. We have had a successful working relationship with A&E but, as a family, we cannot imagine the show going forward without our patriarch at the helm. We are in discussions with A&E to see what that means for the future of Duck Dynasty. Again, thank you for your continued support of our family."

GLAAD on Wednesday condemned Robertson's remarks as "some of the vilest and most extreme statements uttered against LGBT people in a mainstream publication" and later commended A&E for swiftly suspending him.
"By taking quick action and removing Robertson from future filming, A&E has sent a strong message that discrimination is neither a Christian nor an American value," GLAAD spokesperson Wilson Cruz said.

The Human Rights Campaign and PETA also are among the other organizations that have slammed Robertson.

Yet others have come to his defense, including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Sarah Palin and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who have argued for Robertson's right to free speech.

__________________
All our wars in air or in water are of NO worth;
if we haven’t so far learnt to live on earth.
All battles do culminate in ending a war;
A war generating battles is ‘curse’ not ‘mirth’.

At that time, I will search out and destroy all of the nations who have come against Jerusalem - Zechariah 12:9

The A&E channel has reversed its decision to drop "Duck Dynasty" patriarch Phil Robertson from the show for his remarks about gay people.

In a statement released on Friday, A&E said it decided to bring Robertson back to the reality show after discussions with his family and "numerous advocacy groups".

The channel had put Robertson on what it called an indefinite "hiatus" following his comments in a GQ magazine article about how the Bible informs his view of gay people.

His remarks were attacked by groups including GLAAD, the gay media watch organisation.

But A&E's decision drew a backlash from those who said they supported Robertson's comments and others who defended him on the basis of freedom of speech.

Conservative politicians and fans said that Robertson's beliefs were consistent with the Bible.

Duck Dynasty ranks among the most-watched US cable television programmes and averages about eight million viewers per episode. Its fifth season is due to begin on January 15.

By lifting Robertson's suspension after nine days, A&E assures that the 67-year-old will not miss production of the series' sixth season about the wealthy Louisiana clan's life of hunting, fishing and domestic squabbles.

Asked what he thought was sinful, Robertson told GQ magazine: "Start with homosexual behaviour and just morph from there.

"Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men."

Although Robertson never apologised for his comments, his family did say they regretted his "coarse language".

A&E said at the time it was disappointed after reading Robertson's remarks, which it added were his personal views and did not reflect those of the network.

After reinstating Robertson A&E said of the show: "It resonates with a large audience because it is a show about family, a family that America has come to love.

"As you might have seen in many episodes, they come together to reflect and pray for unity, tolerance and forgiveness."

Robertson founded the multi-million dollar family company Duck Commander which supplies duck-hunting equipment from their home town of West Monroe.

__________________
All our wars in air or in water are of NO worth;
if we haven’t so far learnt to live on earth.
All battles do culminate in ending a war;
A war generating battles is ‘curse’ not ‘mirth’.

At that time, I will search out and destroy all of the nations who have come against Jerusalem - Zechariah 12:9

__________________
All our wars in air or in water are of NO worth;
if we haven’t so far learnt to live on earth.
All battles do culminate in ending a war;
A war generating battles is ‘curse’ not ‘mirth’.

At that time, I will search out and destroy all of the nations who have come against Jerusalem - Zechariah 12:9